Well, I need to vent. I have an almost 13 yr old in an online public school right now. I took him out of his middle school because he was feeling so much pressure to misbehave and act like his friends. He got really sick of it and felt that he could do better academically at home, and this even though he actually loves going to school and being around other kids. So, I went ahead and took him out.
The online school I chose for him is called iQ academy. I don't recommend it. He enrolled three weeks into their school year. He was not allowed to jump in with the other kids, he had to catch up. So he has been doing double the amount of work the other kids have to do for the past three weeks, and he's had it. He hates the school and wants to go back to his old PS (which is truly a nightmare). I don't want that for him, but I do feel for him. I also cannot handle helping him with his tremendous workload anymore the way I have been because I've started a part time job. The only reason he's been able to keep up is because I've been by his side the whole time. He's simply not academically inclined at all. He hates schoolwork and always has.
I have several options. I could put him back into his horrible getto school. I could force him to stick it out with his current school, which I don't have the heart for. I could see if K12 is still accepting students. Or I could simply homeschool him, which is what I've done before. There are problems with each of these possible scenarios:
1. Putting him back in PS would make him suffer academically, morally and emotionally.
2. His current school has an unintellligible and poorly written and organized curriculum, and it expects so much of him that he has learned to hate learning. He is not capable to doing the work without extensive tutoring from me.
3. I don't know if K12 is still accepting students, and if it is, I don't know if they will also force him to catch up to the other kids. If not, it might be a good option.
4. I love to homeschool because of the freedom to choose my own curriculum and set my own schedule. The responsibility is all on my shoulders with this, though. And my son is not at all a self-starter. He is very irresponsible and can be very defiant. If he doesn't like one of my assignments, he'll just refuse to do it. He want's to go back to PS anyway, so he would probably try to make my life hellish so I would be forced to put him in.
So here's a question for you homeschooling moms who are more into structure: what would you do in my situation? How do you deal with a defiant homeschooling or online schooling teen?
And for anyone reading this who knows about k12, do they make kids who enroll late catch up, or can they just jump in where the other kids are?
The online school I chose for him is called iQ academy. I don't recommend it. He enrolled three weeks into their school year. He was not allowed to jump in with the other kids, he had to catch up. So he has been doing double the amount of work the other kids have to do for the past three weeks, and he's had it. He hates the school and wants to go back to his old PS (which is truly a nightmare). I don't want that for him, but I do feel for him. I also cannot handle helping him with his tremendous workload anymore the way I have been because I've started a part time job. The only reason he's been able to keep up is because I've been by his side the whole time. He's simply not academically inclined at all. He hates schoolwork and always has.
I have several options. I could put him back into his horrible getto school. I could force him to stick it out with his current school, which I don't have the heart for. I could see if K12 is still accepting students. Or I could simply homeschool him, which is what I've done before. There are problems with each of these possible scenarios:
1. Putting him back in PS would make him suffer academically, morally and emotionally.
2. His current school has an unintellligible and poorly written and organized curriculum, and it expects so much of him that he has learned to hate learning. He is not capable to doing the work without extensive tutoring from me.
3. I don't know if K12 is still accepting students, and if it is, I don't know if they will also force him to catch up to the other kids. If not, it might be a good option.
4. I love to homeschool because of the freedom to choose my own curriculum and set my own schedule. The responsibility is all on my shoulders with this, though. And my son is not at all a self-starter. He is very irresponsible and can be very defiant. If he doesn't like one of my assignments, he'll just refuse to do it. He want's to go back to PS anyway, so he would probably try to make my life hellish so I would be forced to put him in.
So here's a question for you homeschooling moms who are more into structure: what would you do in my situation? How do you deal with a defiant homeschooling or online schooling teen?
And for anyone reading this who knows about k12, do they make kids who enroll late catch up, or can they just jump in where the other kids are?
but I think I'd do just about anything and sell anything and everything to make this happen.
